Standish O'Grady's Cuculain : a critical edition /

Standish O'Grady (1846-1928) is considered one of the seminal figures in the Irish literary revival of the late-19th and early-20th centuries. In this addition to the long-running "Irish Studies" series, Castle and Bixby (both, Arizona State Univ.) have collected selected portions of O'Grady's two-volume History of Ireland (1878, 1880) and History of Ireland: Critical and Philosophical, vol. 1 (1881). The excerpted texts have been rearranged and blended together with the goal of providing an accessible narrative of Ireland's "legendary past," focusing on the mythic Irish hero Cuculain. Unfortunately, the editors do not identify which of the three volumes of O'Grady's History the respective texts (introductions and 17 chapters) come from. The main part of the book comprises the texts, and four critical essays follow. These touch on the important place of O'Grady's Cuculain in Irish history and culture. Additional material includes suggestions for further reading; a glossary; and a chronology that begins with O'Grady's birth and ends in 1939 with the death of W. B. Yeats (and the completion of his last work, The Death of Cuchulain). A valuable addition to the field of Irish studies. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. --Robert P. Nash, University of Nebraska at Omaha